Week 4 Fantasy Trade Values (2024)

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Finding the right trade combination is part science, but it's mostly an art. You have to figure out how much leverage you have, find the right person in your league to make a move with, find the right combination of players, and somehow manage to avoid offending each other as you go through negotiations.

The problem is, everyone values every player differently, and every team's needs are different. This column is an attempt to bridge the gap between the two sides when you are looking to negotiate a deal. Do you think Kawhi Leonard and Dwight Howard is a perfectly fair offer for Stephen Curry but your league-mate doesn't? You can just consult this chart to see that, at least by my view, that deal makes sense for both sides.

Of course, we have a handful of big names that are much tougher to figure out right now, because of injuries. If you drafted Kevin Durant with your second-round pick and thought you might be able to keep your head above water, but find yourself staring at an 0-3 record with little hope for the near future, you just may need to move Durant.

But how do you value a player who just might be the most valuable asset in Fantasy when healthy if you don't know when he'll be available? It's tough. Durant is going to be an incredibly valuable player once he is able to play, but you'll probably get nothing out of him for the next month. Let's take a look at some deals he has been involved in recently to see what the wisdom of the crowd says.

Trade No. 1: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Perry Jones for Damian Lillard, LeBron James and Ersan Ilyasova

By the trade value chart, Westbrook, Durant and Jones are worth 34 combined points, while LeBron and Lillard combine for 68 points. The side acquiring Durant and Westbrook might end up in better shape down the road, but the gap between those two and Lillard/LeBron simply isn't enough to come close to justifying it. You'll be crippling your team for the next month, at least, so it might not matter how good you are for the next 3.

Trade No. 2: Jeremy Lin and Andre Drummond for Durant and Khris Middleton

This one comes out a bit more even, but it still might be an overpay for Durant. The side giving up Drummond ends up overpaying by about 8 points, but that is certainly close enough to justify it if you are worried about the havoc Drummond is wreaking on both percentage categories. At this point, his price still has some upside baked into it, because he certainly hasn't been good enough to justify this so far. If he doesn't turn it around quickly, his value is going to start tumbling, so this might be a chance for you to get out before the ship sinks.

Additionally, finding a deal for Durant's injured teammate Russell Westbrook can be a chore. He doesn't quite have Durant's upside, but he might also be back from his injury quicker, which could tip the scales in his favor. I have Westbrook priced at 17 as well, the same as Durant, but finding a trade can be equally difficult.

Trade No. 3: Westbrook and Enes Kanter for Ramon Sessions and Jrue Holiday

The Westbrook side is clearly getting the best player here, and probably the third-best as well, given how much of a disaster Sessions has been. This comes out to a pretty fair trade, with the Westbrook owner sending out Westbrook's 17 points to get Holiday's 18, with neither Kanter nor Sessions registering on the chart.

This is a perfect example of the kind of trade you might have to make as a Westbrook owner. You're clearly giving up more long-term value, but Holiday's steadying presence over the next month just may be enough to save your season. If you can't win enough early in the season to make the playoffs, what good does having Westbrook around for them do?

That's the balance you have to strike this early in the season. Are you paying for current value or future value? It's probably too early to panic, but that doesn't mean you can't make a move to change your team's fortunes.